Politics Cannot be Kept Out of Music

Ref: C2224554

This course will not lean towards and specific ideological political persuasion, but will show how Elizabethan composers were obliged to change their style depending on whether the monarch was Anglican or Catholic, how Purcell wrote in a manner suited to Charles II's taste and how he had to find new ideas after the King's death. The course will consider Mozart's arguments with Joseph II and Beethoven's fights with the censor. Verdi was strongly involved in the politics of Italian unification and Elgar and his contemporaries felt obliged to write music to lift the spirits during World War 1. The persecution undertaken by the Nazis and by Stalin cast an appallingly dark shadow over twentieth-century music, but must not be ignored.

Course aim

Few composers have avoided political influence. Many ignored it, some were persecuted or even killed, others collaborated and some rebelled. And somehow they produced very fine music.

Do I need any particular skills or experience?

No skills or experience needed

This course is suitable for beginners and improvers

Anybody is welcome. It is not necessary to be able to read music or play an instrument, though if anyone wishes to offer .....!

By the end of the course I should be able to:

explain how composers adapted their styles for political considerations

demonstrate how music fitted into a wider socio-political context

consider the way today's politcians use music as a tool

How will I be taught?

The WEA tutor will use a range of different teaching and learning methods and encourage you and the group to be actively involved in your learning

What kind of feedback can I expect?

You will have opportunities to discuss your progress with your tutor

You will be encouraged to share your work with the group and discuss your learning

You will be encouraged to consider other students work and give your opinions and suggestions

What else do I need to know?

Nothing else is needed

Pre-course work, reading and information sources

No pre reading is required but research on the subject on the internet or in the library may be helpful

What can I do next?

Progress to another WEA course

Progress to a course with another provider

This course deals specifically with music, but students might find it interesting to consider the influence of politics on artists, writers, philosophers, etc.